Greaves Log: Homecoming Part 3
Homecoming Part 3 Homestead Bound Brooding Suspicions I was still a little dizzy when I was finally released from the cell. I was wheeled halfway into the hallway, before Zachary had me unstrapped from the infernal jacket that restricted me. I gasped for air as I tore the muzzle off. We were led into the gathering hall, were all the other Rogue Traders had already gathered. There was a subtle hint of subdued hostility in the air. No one trusted anyone else. In no time at all, the accusations started all over again. Each side throwing their own suspicions at another person in the room. A shot rang out as Nicole took to the stand. She repeated what she said last time we were gathered here; This time though, she made it clear that the traitors will be caught and dealt with as is necessary. We were dismissed, but were forced to stay on planet until further notice. Initial Investigation Admiral Zachary told us that he and his wife Naomi were going to conduct their own investigation. In the meantime he wanted us to find as many clues as we possibly could concerning the incident. He once again stressed for us not to cause any trouble. Before we left the building, I asked to speak with him and Naomi alone when he had the chance to. Not sure if he noticed me asking the question, but for now there truly were more pressing matters. Fayte, and Vulture were aiding Zachary personally, so I couldn't ask them for the favors that I truly wanted from them. (Damn, I really need to get some vital information that they could access.) So, I was left with Axel, Moll, and Krios by my side. I suggested that we investigate the bombing site first, to which they all agreed was a good start. We went by foot to the main tower. Along the way, some of us noticed that several of the fort's guard were following us. No doubt, keeping an eye out on the biggest trouble makers in the place. As if to illustrate the point, Axel whispered to us that he had sneaked in a crack grenade in his ass, which we could use in case of emergency. (Uggggggh) While I commended him for his 'resourcefulness' I asked him not to use it unless absolutely necessary. He replied with a "Whatever." We arrived, not at the communications room, where I thought the explosion occured, but in front of the General's office which was blocked off by a pair of guards. Turns out, that's were the explosion took place. Krios and Axel tried to sweet talk their way in, but the guards were resolute in not letting anyone in. I tell them that we had permission from Naomi herself to investigate the room; but they got on their micro-beads and confirmed from the woman herself that it wasn't so. (Doggone it.) Moll sent us an image of us talking to the guards while she made her way into the room. From the way she visualized it, the image seemed like it was drawn in crayon. (There was even sunshine and flowers. Should I be worried about her?) With the 'message' sent, Axel and I went off right away on drawing the guard's attention towards us. I try to get information about the explosion itself, but didn't get much. The distraction was working, Moll was silently working the lock and was making progress. It was all going so well, until Axel got overly worked up. The IDIOT threatened the guards with the crack grenade that was in his crack. (WHAT WAS HE THINKING!!?) The guards got back up to converge on their location within the span of five seconds. I made a plea that I wasn't associated with Axel, but only received a rifle butt to the head. Everybody was rounded up swiftly. I would find out later, though, that Moll managed to catch a glimpse of the General's office. Next thing I know, I'm back in a jail cell with my wrists handcuffed to a pole on the far side wall. I swear, if the interrogators don't kill Axel for this, I will. Inquisitor Interrogation The jail cell was adruptly swung open as three men stepped inside. Judging by their attire, they were members of the Inquisition. The one in the front was the leader, the one to his left brought in several tools and wore an apron, and the last one was an astropath. (Shit.) The man took but a single glance at me, and cringed. "Ugh! What in hell do we have here!? A mangy mutt!?" I don't say a thing. All I did was stare at the man. "No matter. Let's get this started." He leaned forward. "What were you trying to do getting into the General's office?" I thought it best to tell the truth here. "I was trying to investigate the-" Without warning, the man slapped me. "Don't test me mutant scum. "What are your comrades trying to accomplish?" This inquisitor.... there's no doubt in my mind about him.... a high and mighty scourge of the universe. His kind doesn't care for anyone unless they are anything less than human cattle following the will of the God Emperor. It probably wouldn't matter what I said. Nonetheless, I need to try. To that end, I was willing to tell him that I was working under Damos, but before I did, I needed to make sure of something. "Sir, are you afraid of Tarron Damos?" He just stared at me. "He's avoiding the question... Bring out the battery, and electrocute him!!" The man in the apron strapped pins in my shoulders and turned the device on. The electric current running through my body was painful, but I easily endured it. "Well now. That's impressive. Most men howl at that level of voltage..... TURN IT UP HIGHER!!! AGAIN!!!" My fur stood on end as the machine unleashed a torrent of shocks in my body. Once again, I managed to withstand the pain, but it was more difficult this time around. (What is with today and people shocking me?) "Tch, it would appear that conventional methods are getting us nowhere." The Inquisitor pondered aloud. He turned to the astropath. "Look into his mind." (DAMN IT, DAMN IT, DAMN IT!!!) This is the worst possible outcome! With the Inquisition poking through my mind, they will be able to confirm that I didn't do what they think I did, but not without finding out everything else I'm hiding!! If they find out that I was changed into a wolf man because of chaotic forces, they'll execute me on the spot!!! And yet, what could I do but stare in fear and anger as the astropath approached me, and stared at me with his eyeless sockets? The only thing I could do, was brace myself as I felt the man's thoughts pierced through my own. The Psychic's voice echoed through my mind. "What do you know about the bomb?" All the Astropath got in return was an image of the moment I saw the tower in smoke, with debris falling from it. He wasn't satisfied. "What were you doing in the tower?" A flashback of Nathan telling me to investigate the situation, faded in and out of my mind. He pushed into my mind further. "Are you allied with chaos?" With this, I swear, everything turned red in my eyes, and mind. Rage filled my entire body and soul, reaching a breaking point. It wasn't enough for me to answer inside my mind, I also voiced my objection aloud. (At least, I think I did.) "NO!! AND IF I EVER FOUND AN AGENT OF CHAOS, I WOULD KILL THEM!!" With that outburst, the astropath's presence left my mind. My head throbbed with pain as I gasped for air. I wanted nothing more than to hold it, but my hands were still chained to the pole. The Inquisition left my cell, leaving me alone. It took, what felt like over an hour for the guards to release me from my cell. Wayward Investigation Being in arrested twice in one day left me in a foul mood. Granted, the first time was my fault for panicking, but the second time was simply outrageous! Krios was a little roughed up from his interrogation, but he was fine. Moll didn't have any signs of harm on her. (I guess you can't get much from someone who can't speak correctly. Much to my amusement, the same couldn't be said for Axel. He was so beaten up, he was in a wheelchair. Although he seemed not to be phased by it. "Worth it" was his exact words, I believe. We made our way to the shooting range while Moll patched Axel to the best of her abilities. She showed us an image of General Faux Shot's Office while we were walking. It was charred black, and light poured in from a wide hole on the far side of the room. All in all, the information we gained was not worth the price we just paid. When we reached the shooting range, we saw an elderly man with a rifle shooting clay pigeons; his servant off to the side. When we greeted him, he introduced himself as a big game hunter. He was originally here to hunt the local wildlife, but was now stuck due to the recent proceedings. He took an immediate interest in me saying how he would love to hunt me for my pelt. Krios tried to sell me to the man, but he didn't seem all to interested in just buying me, just shooting at me..... (Most uncomfortable conversation I've ever been a part of, EVER.) I challenged the man to a friendly shooting competition. He agreed, and we took turns shooting at clay pigeons. I missed one, but the other man got all of his pigeons. "Not bad, but you do have a lot of room for improvement." He stated. Before I could show him my dinosaur tooth, and get better acquainted with the hunter, Krios showed him his data-slate containing images of said dinosaurs. They stood still for quite some time, but from the expressions on their faces, I'd say they were having a private conversation via telepathy. He bid us good day. A smile spread across his face. Right before we left though, I did ask him if he saw a man in black armor wielding a vindicar assassin's rifle. He stated that the man I was talking about lived on planet, and had his own place here. Knowing that, I thanked him and left. Next we arrived at the residential area...... where we eventually ran into none other than Nordshimm. Who had my sword hanging on a wall. (That piece of shit.) Krios went straight up and congratulated the man on pissing me off on a level no one on the ship ever has. (Grrrrrrrrr!) Moll pointed at my sword to see it, to which Nordshimm allowed. While inspecting it, Moll mishandled it, and dropped it on the floor, causing it to almost cut straight through the floor and down into the lower level below. At that point, Nordshimm took it back up and put it on his belt. Keeping my anger in check, I asked him who he thought was most likely to cause the bombing incident. He claimed that Nathan was the one he believed to be the killer. (We were getting nowhere with this.) He was about to leave the place, but I put my hand on his shoulder. "I swear to you Nordshimm, before we leave this planet, I will get my sword back." He laughed. "Well I hope you have a lot of money, because I'm not relinquishing this sword for no less than 40K thrones!!" He underestimates me.... Good. Next we investigated the comms equipment that fell from the tower. It was a downright mess. Scraps of metal were sprawled everywhere. The main spire was more twisted than a pretzel. It landed on a burned building, which seemed to result in even more destruction. As we looked into the matter, things became evident to the rest of the crew. Axel realized that by the burn marks on the spire, the bomb that had been used to kill the General must have been a melta bomb. And after an extensive look into the building itself, not only did we find out that it was damaged by an unrelated fire, but also Moll found that there was a secret passage way just out of our reach. We reported our findings to the local guards and left the place. The next place we went was the communications room. Inside there, we met an irate man shouting at a subordinate. Krios asked if we could help him. "Well, unless you can get the ship's moving again, then no you can't help me!" The man shouted. We calmed him down, and asked him to aid us in finding the traitor, as to help him get off this planet quicker. The man became more cooperative. He told us that he was a trader of weapons and slaves, and that he was conducting business here, prior to the bombing. He claimed that he caught a suspicious message just before the tower blew up, but he couldn't analyze it, because it was written in code. I wanted to focus on this message, but Krios had other plans on his mind. He made a deal with the trader. He exchanged some of his astropaths on our ship, that were under his control, for some body guards the man had on hand. And Axel decided to get his two cents in, and made a deal to get a kid. It seems that he was interested in becoming a father and this seemed like a good place to adopt. Krios helped him in sealing the deal. (These idiots have no sense of priorities. This could've easily come after we finished what we settled out to do. I wanted to prod the man further to see if he sold any melta bombs, but I don't think he would have given that information for free, or at all.) We just got the message on a data-slate for Fayte to look at later, and left the man. Krios's new guards were now following him. (This guy.... He's building an army. First the astropaths, then the Praetorian guards, and now this. I don't like it.... He is going to try something...... And I might not make it when he does.... I need to formulate a plan.) While we were walking down the street, we saw a dark eldar female picking parts from the ground. When we asked her what she was doing, she claimed that she was picking up bomb fragments from the ground. According to her they were Melta bomb parts, specifically a Det-charge for focused explosions. And then she rudely demanded that we leave her..... (What a bitch.) A det-charge? Those are pretty rare.... I know this doesn't really add anything new to the information...... And yet, I got this feeling that something wasn't right...... I couldn't put my finger on it though...... Krios and Axel got on a verbal dispute with each other as I wondered about this, but they didn't escalate it to a fist fight. We turned around to leave for the next destination..... To Be Continued. . . . .